Frozen Heart
by Cosmic Angel
Summary: RE-Written for a songfic challenge. Hermione's last conversation with the man she loves before her death.


This songfic was written for a challenge on Fiction Net. I don't own the song or the characters.

This is the third re-writing. It's been put up twice *hits head* I'm finally happy with it. Sorry about the 'putting-it-up-taking-it-down' thing. Thank you to those who reviewed the first drafts.

~ * ~

The door to her cell was thrown open, waking her from her light sleep. Two Death Eaters, masked and cloaked, stood in the light that filtered through the dungeons. She closed her eyes, rubbing them as best she could with her arms chained at the elbow to the wall, trying to get used to the light that she had not seen for so long.

Her arms were freed from the magical chains that had been securing her to the small bench in her dark prison, deep beneath an island. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the life as she was dragged along. She was led up a long flight of stairs by the Death Eaters, her feet falling uselessly on each step. She knew better than to fight with them.

The smell of sea air hit her as they neared the top. Distant screams filtered through the air as the occupants of the large stone prison suffered their nightmares. Her analytical mind started working as she was thrown to the ground, trying to guess where she was.

"Azkaban…" she murmured weakly, her hands feeling the ground. It was rough stone, and the loose gravel stuck to her cold cheek. The sound of waves hitting the rocks made her sit up. With an effort, she made her way on all fours to the edge of what was revealed as a cliff. Staring into the water below, watching the waves break over the jagged rocks, she laughed. She couldn't believe she had survived to see them again, couldn't believe she was alive and breathing, gulping breaths of the precious night air.

She could hear approaching footsteps, but didn't bother to pay attention. Nobody ever bothered with her any more.

"Leave me with the Mudblood. She'll be no trouble."

She hadn't heard that voice for a year now. Even now she could barely believe that she had survived to hear it again. When they had parted with that last kiss, he had promised to see her dead.

"You." Her voice was weak, and trembling, she turned, staring up into the eyes of her one time lover.

"Yes, me." 

His voice was as icy as his eyes, his pale skin shimmering in the moonlight. She cast a tired eye over him, his hair, smoothed back as always, his lean body clad in thick black robes. She shivered as a cold sea breeze swept over her.

"You're cold." He pointed his wand towards her, and whispered a spell. She neither knew nor cared what spell it was, but a robe was transfigured and placed around her, almost tenderly. She looked up, hoping to see the love back in his eyes.

He smirked coldly. "Do you have any last words before you die?"

_You only see what your eyes want to see  
How can life be what you want it to be  
You're frozen  
When your heart's not open_  
  
__

She bit her lip to stop from crying, but still a tear escaped her eye. 

"Why are you doing this to me? To us? We had such a beautiful thing together. I gave up my life to follow you, your dreams were mine, your hopes became my aims. Everything you wanted to achieve, I worked to help you get." She shook her head, refusing to cry, refusing to accept that their love was dead. "All I ever wanted was to be by your side, forever."

"You were a useful tool. But you weren't willing to give me everything. You missed your friends; you resented giving up your place at University, you hated me for taking life as you knew it away." He circled her, his lip curling in apparent disgust.

"That was two years ago," she whispered, hugging the robe tighter around herself. "You gave me everything I ever wanted and more. I loved you more than anything. And then, you turned so cold. You pushed me away, pushed everyone away from you."

"Don't you realise yet?" His voice was mocking as he passed behind her. "You were never anything special. I never loved you, Hermione."

His words echoed in her head, driving another tear out. It fell to the ground, darkening a patch of earth.

"You used me to get to Hogwarts, to get close to the school, to the Order?"

"Of course. You never meant anything else to me. You were just useful to help me reach my goals. And you did just what you were told, like a good little Mudblood." Even though she couldn't see his smirk, his victorious grin, she knew they were on his face.

She was shaking, with cold, with fear, with rage. She had been used, betrayed, and all because he wanted more power. She felt sick when she thought of what she had done for him, all in the name of love.

_You're so consumed with how much you get  
You waste your time with hate and regret  
You're broken  
When your heart's not open_  
  


"You're a monster." Her trembling voice was clear in the still night air. "I thought that you loved me, that everyone else was wrong. Monsters can't love, and yet you loved me more than I thought it was possible for anyone, anyone to … love." Her voice faded as she realised who she was talking to.

"Hermione, you were the most important tool I could have hoped for." He stopped circling her and stood in front of her, pleased to see her cowering at his feet. "You helped me get closer to everyone in power in the Wizarding world. You helped me do things that every Dark Lord down the ages has only dreamed of. And now you'll help me take over." 

He was enjoying watching her suffering, enjoying listening to her. His gaze travelled over her thin form, up across the sea to the distant land, thinking of how to torture her next.

This was better than the Cruciatus that was favoured by other Death Eaters. Why wound the physical body, when with the right words, you could destroy the soul?

Hermione stared at the man opposite her. When she had left Hogwarts two years ago with him, she had lost all contact with her friends. All they knew was that she had run off with a Slytherin. They would kill her if they knew the whole story. That is, if she survived to tell it.

She had given up life as she knew it to be with her love. She had been plunged into a world of shadows, where death and destruction were everyday things. Her Gryffindor ideals had been replaced with Slytherin traits. She had still clung to her bravery, though. It was what had got her through so far. She would be a Gryffindor to the bitter end.

She had suffered for her hopes, her ambitions. Her education was laughed at, even though she always crept away to libraries to study. She had been put through hell.

And all because she had hoped to change the ways of the man she loved. The world was doomed, because she had foolishly believed that she could melt the frozen heart of the man who stood before her now, driving her insane before he killed her.__

  
_Mmmmmm, if I could melt your heart  
Mmmmmm, we'd never be apart  
Mmmmmm, give yourself to me  
Mmmmmm, you hold the key_

"You're trapped." Her voice was barely more than a whisper, and still she fought him, hoping to find a crack in his armour, hoping it wasn't a lie. She knew he loved her. She knew what she had to do.

She knew she would die trying.

"You cower there, unable to stand before me, on the edge of death, and tell me I'm trapped?" His shrill laugh shook her; her eyes closed on the tears, her heart ached.

"You are." She tried to get up, but her body failed her. It was weak from its year in the dark, with little food and water. It could not meet her many demands. Yet she was not giving up. She would stand and face him before the end, with no more tears.

Of course no more tears. She shook her head slightly, stirring another from her eye. She hoped that she would cry no more for her lost love.

"You're weak, Hermione. You aren't strong enough for this place. In this world, only the strong survive."

"I was strong." She put her hands to the floor and attempted to stand. Her legs buckled, and she fell; his wand cast a spell which caught her and eased her down gently. She looked at him hopefully as he did this, wondering why he had.

He almost cheered when he saw the hope on her face, knowing he could shatter her illusions so easily. He wanted to make her suffer, emotionally, before she got hurt physically. She was going to suffer for making him feel this way, suffer for making him weak. Suffer for making him love.

"I was strong, when I stood at your side, always there, helping you." Hermione wiped away yet another tear. She prayed that she would cry no more for him, but her soul screamed out his name, begged for his soft kisses. She knew that more tears would fall before the end of the night.

"You were never strong. You trusted your heart too much. You didn't listen to your head. And now, the Wizarding world is about to fall as my Death Eaters move in. It's all your fault, Hermione."  
  
_Now there's no point in placing the blame  
And you should know I suffer the same  
If I lose you  
My heart will be broken_  
  


Hermione stared at the ground, noticing the uneven stones, ignoring how they cut into her legs and hands, the pain not comparing to what she was suffering emotionally. Death would be bliss, a release from the emotional torture he was putting her through.

She knew what he was trying to do to her. She cursed it for working. But no matter what she said, death was inevitable.

She could still go down fighting.

"It's not my fault." She lifted her eyes to him, and then above, to the crescent moon that illuminated half the world. She stared at it, as if praying for the strength to stand.

"It's not my fault that you kill people. It's not my fault that you share the Pureblood ideal of a world free of Muggle-borns." She blinked as her eyes filled with tears, looking anywhere but at him.

"It's not my fault I fell in love."

  
_Love is a bird, she needs to fly  
Let all the hurt inside of you die  
You're frozen  
When your heart's not open_  
  


She felt his hands on her arms, gently helping her to stand, and she froze in shock. Maybe, just maybe he would admit he felt something.

"How foolish you are, to try and convince me otherwise." His voice whispered in her ear, and she shivered involuntarily. Even after a year apart, after he claimed to have used her, his voice still made her feel faint. She was disappointed, hurt; that he was being so nice, always calling her Hermione and not Granger, helping her up, and yet was still tearing her apart.

"Remember, Hermione." He still held on to her. She didn't know why. "Remember the last time you were with me. Remember what I said."

_They drew apart, and he looked into her eyes with a strange smile._

_"Hermione, you'll be the death of me," he said seriously. She smiled, not knowing what to say. He lifted his hand, and two Death Eaters took her arms._

_"What's going on? What are you doing? Get off me!" She struggled to free herself as they started dragging her away, never taking her eyes off her lover._

_"What's going on? What are you playing at?" she screamed. He stepped over to her delicately, and took her face in his hands. The Death Eaters paused for him to speak._

_"Hermione, you will be the death of me. I can't allow that to happen. You've given me what I wanted; everything I asked for you gave me. I'm so close to doing it, to winning. You could stop me. I won't let you do that. Now it's time to say goodbye." He kissed her. "The next time I see you, I'll kill you."_

_The Death Eaters had dragged her away. He had slammed the door on her as she screamed his name._

Hermione leaned backwards into him, wishing she had her wand. "I would never be the death of you," she said slowly, wanting to believe that this was all a hoax.

"Hermione, I have my spies in the Order. They knew I had a person to warm my bed. They, foolishly, thought I cared, and were planning on kidnapping you. I couldn't allow that to happen. I was too close. With the information you gave Crabbe and Goyle when they interrogated you, I was able to bring down the Ministry. I'm hours away from destroying the Order. If they had taken you, I wouldn't have had all the information needed."

Hermione's mind was in a daze. She had helped bring down the Ministry. She was going to be responsible for the destruction of the Order.

"My name will go down in the history books for this. And you won't be there to see it." He said this harshly, trying to forget the way he had slumped against the door, listening to her screams, his heart breaking.

She held him down. She made him weak, something he couldn't allow. Without her, he was indestructible. He would win.

Hermione shivered again, this time with cold, still clinging to the remnants of her Gryffindor bravery.

"I loved you. I still do. Please, let me live, let me be with you. I want to be with you forever, I don't care what my friends and family think. My love for you is stronger than that. If you want to rule, I will be there by your side, forever. I don't care, because I love you more than anything else."

He threw her away at these words, turning so he could compose himself. He was not the person to let people live because of a few silly words. No matter how much they affected him.

"Hermione Granger, you're just a foolish little Mudblood who followed her heart to me, and led the world with you. They're all mine now. You handed victory to me on a silver platter when you came away with me."

"Do you have no feelings at all?" Her voice was so quiet that he struggled to hear this question.

He thought of the times he had got frustrated with the way things worked, and only she had been there to help. He envisioned the times he had spent with her, when she had made him … happy. He remembered the love that he had started to feel; and the anger at himself when he realised what he felt.

The time she was taken away from him, how his heart had started to break.

"No, Hermione. No I don't."

  
_Mmmmmm, if I could melt your heart  
Mmmmmm, we'd never be apart  
Mmmmmm, give yourself to me  
Mmmmmm, you hold the key_  
  


Hermione didn't know what to do. She would rather have been submitted to hours of torture under the Cruciatus by Lucius Malfoy, who delighted in torturing Mudbloods, than this. The only thing that had stopped her ever being tortured like that was him, her lover, the power he held.

They were more alike than he thought. Both were top of their classes. Both had a similar background. Both preferred to use words over violence.

She knew that he was purposely doing this. The similarities didn't end there. It was exactly what she would have done, in his position. And she knew that she would break. He was too good at this emotional torture.

He smirked. This was going better than he had ever hoped. She had made him weak. She had got under his skin, and was carving a place in his heart. He couldn't allow that.

"Love is a weakness. Stop deluding yourself, Hermione. You loved, and it has brought you death. Whereas I do not love, and it has granted me immortality."

"You will never be immortal. Never. The Order, Hogwarts, they will be strong enough to destroy you! You must have forgotten Harry! That's something I thought you never would do. He's still alive! He's always, always hated you! Every year at Hogwarts he loathed you for what you tried to do to him and to us, Ron and myself. He'll never let you live if you kill me. One of you has to die, and it will be you and your armies that lose."

"Harry Potter? He's still hoping he stands a chance? Good, I was rather hoping he would be there to see me take over, hoping he would die by my wand." He brushed a strand of his hair back into place, cursing it for falling, cursing the night for ending, cursing her for still loving him. 

"He will die by my wand, my curse, as will you. Morning comes, Hermione. The sun will rise across your broken body, and the world will know that I have won."

"The sun will melt you." This was a stubborn whisper.

"Melt? Contrary to popular belief, Hermione, I'm not a vampire. I am immortal. My name will never die. As for the sunlight." He paused in his speech and laughed, turning to wave a hand dramatically to the horizon. "The sunlight doesn't affect me in any way at all. The sunlight will bring me victory."

"It will bring you heartbreak. You'll see what you've done." With an effort, Hermione stood for a few seconds, before swaying and falling back. She was getting stronger. She would do it. She wouldn't die cowering beneath him like so many others had during his reign of terror. She would stand defiant.

"I will see a creature that should have been killed at birth, finally dead. Someone who tried to make me love. Someone who fooled themselves, who betrayed their friends, for me. A useful tool in my plans. No wizard has ever had these plans, and they have certainly never had a willing mine of information such as you." He allowed himself silent congratulations. He could practically see her heart shattering every time he spoke.

"You will see love. Deny it as much as you like, as much as you can. But I know you love me." Hermione dropped the robe that was around her. She didn't need it any more. 

The sky was lightening as dawn sped towards them. Hermione knew she would die as the sun rose. He always liked a dramatic kill. That's what it would be. Would she become a martyr, she wondered, someone who had died doing what was right?

Or would she forever be known as a silly fool for believing that she was loved?

Either way, she would be forever known, along with him. That was all she wanted. To be with him, frozen in time, together forever.

  
_You only see what your eyes want to see  
How can life be what you want it to be  
You're frozen  
When your heart's not open_  
  


"You may think that you're cold and emotionless, but I've seen the heart that beats inside, the one that loves. I know you care for me. You'll realise this, when it's too late, you'll finally accept. And then." She laughed cruelly, imitating him. "You'll be broken." She put her hands in front of her, steadying herself. She saw his feet moving as he turned to stare at her.

  
"Broken?" His voice was harsh and cut through the cold air like a knife. He could not be broken. He was invincible. He was more powerful than any Dark Wizard before him.

"Yes, broken!"

He strode over to her, his robes swirling around him, his face angry, trying to understand what she meant. "Care to explain what you mean by that?"

Hermione finally got triumphantly to her feet and stood before him, silently praying for strength, her face determined.

"You'll be broken. I know that you'll come out of this the loser. And then you'll learn an important lesson, too late, one that you should have learnt at Hogwarts. When taking over the world, don't fall in love!"

  
_Mmmmmm, if I could melt your heart  
Mmmmmm, we'd never be apart  
Mmmmmm, give yourself to me  
Mmmmmm, you hold the key_  
  


Her words shocked him. Why, he didn't know. He was the epitome of coldness; he radiated ice from every pore. His heart was a glacier, simply there to keep him alive, not to do any thinking.

So why did her words shock him?

Was it because he was afraid? Was he insecure? Or was it because he knew she was right?

He knew. Suddenly everything made sense, and all the pieces fell into place. He tilted his head to stare at her.

She would still have to die. He would just make it less painful, as thanks for showing him the way. Now he would have to be even more ruthless, and never allow anyone to try and get close to him again.

He would win this war. He would rule, alone, never loving anyone. He could never love after her anyway. His hand came up to run through his hair as he contemplated this. He would be alone.

Forever alone.

"Hermione, why are you still kidding yourself? I am not in love. I never was, and never will be. You were just someone to warm my bed, someone to help me take over. Both of which you did perfectly." He shot her a cold smirk, knowing that she was still falling.

She managed to take a step forward, and she took hold of his hand, noticing how he didn't snatch it away. "You never meant to love me, but you did and you do! I love you!" she whispered, but her words were as loud as a thousand cries dying in the night. The sun's rays flickered over the horizon.

He raised his wand, and pointed it at her heart, staring deep into her brown eyes, that stared defiantly back. Hers were filled with love, and hope that he would see sense, that he would admit his feelings for her. His were cold, dark, black ice, hiding his inner turmoil.

She gripped his hand tighter, and he knew she wasn't going to give up. If he didn't do it now, she would win, and then all he had worked for would be lost.

The sound of the first seagull of the day shook him from his reverie. He could see the hope in her eyes growing, and knew his eyes were softening. She was refusing to give up in this staring contest of sorts.

He looked away first, unable to bear the intensity of her stare.

_"Avada Kedavra."_

  
_Mmmmmm, if I could melt your heart  
Mmmmmm, we'd never be apart  
Mmmmmm, give yourself to me  
Mmmmmm, you hold the key_  
  


The green light died down, and he stared at the lifeless body at his feet. Inside him, his frozen heart cracked.

He strode away, his armies of Death Eaters waiting for his command, and he fought the battle that he thought he would win. He watched with a cruel smirk as the last of the Malfoys was killed by a Weasley. He didn't know which one. All he could see was a mop of red hair. Pettigrew was killed by Lupin. One by one, his most faithful Death Eaters cast their final spell in despair. 

He fought as best he could. But all the time his mind was fixed on her, the image of how he had left her, dead; her last three words echoing above the spells around him.

He lost the battle.

All it took was one well placed _Avada Kedavra_ from the Boy Who Lived, and he fell, his last word a whisper of her name, her arms reaching out to welcome him to the afterlife.

_If I could melt your heart_

When Hermione's body was found a few days later, everyone knew what had happened. The world knew what she had died trying to do, and she went down in the history books, next to him, finally where she wanted to be, for eternity.

_Hermione Granger, the only woman Lord Voldemort ever loved. She died for us and for love. We can never thank her enough, and we hope that wherever she is now, she is with Tom Riddle, Lord Voldemort, in his arms._

~ * ~

Just to clear up any confusion, the pairing is Hermione/Tom. Not Hermione Draco. I hope you enjoyed it!


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